ACT budget passes after heated debate

The ACT Government's 2013 budget has passed during Thursday's late sitting of the Legislative Assembly.

MLAs sat through several long evenings this week debating the budget, with members clashing and trading insults over a range of issues.

The budget includes a $254 million deficit, cuts to stamp duty and increases in household rates.

More than $127 million in new spending is offset by $142 million in savings.

The Opposition had opposed much of the budget, but the appropriation bill was finally passed by the Assembly just after 9:00pm.

Treasurer Andrew Barr says it is a drawn out process every year and he is pleased the budget has been approved.

"The Opposition have a role to play in our democracy and they certainly took every opportunity over the course of about 12 hours of debate to raise all of the political points that they wanted to raise," he said.

"In the end though our job is to get on with governing the Territory, that's what we've done. We've got this budget through."

Much of debate focused on the Government's $614 million plan to build light rail between Gungahlin and Canberra's city centre.